Rajasthan Royals bashed the Kings XI punjab and crashed all the mathematical calculations of Tom Moody,the Punjab coach that they are still with a chance of making to the semifinals.
It was all one way traffic after the 12th over of the Punjab innings when they last Jayawardena(44) and Yuvraj(28) in the same over by Dole.They were moving briskly at 108 but lost wickets in heap to fold up for a meagre 153 runs with Dole and Trivedi picking up 2 wickets each.

Rajasthan started in a hurried fashion with Michael Lumb of England scoring 83 off mere 43 balls and blasted Sreesanth and Powar out of the attack.

The KingsXI fielding went from bad to worse to pathetic as the Royals reached the target in 15 overs with a huge boost to their net run rate and putting them in third place in the points table

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KingsXI would hope to carry the momemtum they had in kolkata when they chased down 200 easily against KKR.It is now the turn for them to meet the Rajasthan Royals at their homeground in Jaipur.

KingsXI could spoil the party of Rajasthan if they could get past the Royals and do a favour for Kolkata and Chennai.The other way if they lose, then KKR would be in a pretty bad position as they have the match against the formidable Delhi in the Second game today.

The double headers at Jaipur and Kolkata is significant as they could shuffle the points table with more permutations and combinations coming for the semifinal grouping.

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Shane Keith Warne produced his magic touch yet again as Rajasthan Royals beat Deccan Chargers by two runs in a match that was gifted on a plate by the Hyderabad men to Rajasthan.With 5 wins and 5 losses Rajasthan have moved to fourth in the points table and they stand a realistic chance of making the Semis of IPL 2010.

Rajasthan Royals batted first and made a below par 159 with another Shane,Watson being the lone man scoring 58 off 36 balls.Deccan should have finished the match easily with Gilchrist showing his aggressive instincts with a quickfire 34.It was the newcomer Dole who accounted for both the openers and Deccan kept losing wickets at regular intervals succumbing to bad shots.

Deccan was still cruising when in came Warne who picked up 4 wickets for 21 runs in his 4 overs and exposed the inexperienced lower order of the Deccan Chargers.In the end Rohit Sharma’s 73 went in vain as the Royals once again came back from behind to put it past the Deccan Chargers.

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Shane Warne and Graeme Smith are thinking men while Yusuf Pathan is an extraordinary hitter of the cricket ball. These facts were on display in a cracker of a contest in which Team Jaipur bested Team Delhi by five wickets at the Centurion on Tuesday.

Chasing 144 to win, Jaipur were home with nine balls to spare. In the end, Warne won and Virender Sehwag lost because it was the thought put in and not just plain action that delivered the required result.

To begin with, the only thing that Delhi perhaps got right was winning the toss and electing to bat first on what seemed to be a belter. However, 143 was all they could manage because once the innings began, Warne came up with a plan so neat that his opponents, in such cracking form, began losing ground right from when it began.

Of course, there was the obvious to take note of. Munaf Patel’s highly stingy spell that fetched two wickets and Graeme Smith’s responsible, unbeaten 44 (46 balls, 5×4). But it was Pathan’s unbeaten 62 (30 balls, 3×4, 6×6) which was the decisive influence on the match.

In fact, his knock might just go down as the innings of the event. There was immense strength that he showed in his strokes, treating the speedsters and the spinners alike.

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A struggling Rajasthan Royals will look to save their title while a rampaging Delhi Daredevils will strive to continue their unbeaten run when the two sides lock horns in an Indian Premier League encounter on Tuesday.

The Virender Sehwag-led Delhi team is gradually emerging as one of the strongest title contenders and is comfortably second in the points tally after winning all their three matches played so far.

On the other hand, Shane Warne-led Rajasthan Royals have managed three points by virtue of the tied match against Kolkata Knight Riders which they won in the ‘Super Over’ and are languishing seventh in the table.

The Delhi Daredevils’ formidable batting line-up, which managed 189-5 – the highest score of the tournament so far – against last year’s runner-up Chennai Super Kings in their second outing, have made them a force to reckon with.

Their explosive opening pair of Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, followed by the likes of Tillakaratne Dilshan, who scored a gutsy 67 to guide the team to a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore on Sunday, will be a worry for Rajasthan bowlers.

In-form all-rounder AB de Villiers and Mithun Manhas have also proved themselves in trying moments and the side is seemingly poised for chasing down stiff targets.

In the bowling department, Dutch-born Australian left-arm paceman Dirk Nannes, along with India discard Ashish Nehra, is showing some ominous penetration power and getting early breakthroughs.

The new-ball pair is finding supports from the spin duo of Amit Mishra and New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori, who is drawing from his vast experience to make Delhi’s bowling formidable.

In contrast, Rajasthan have seemed like a shadow of the winning unit they were last season.

Young paceman Kamran Khan, who scalped two wickets for 15 runs for a losing cause in Sunday’s match against Kings XI Punjab, and speedster Munaf Patel are surely doing their bit but the batting has failed to back their consistent effort.

The team will be desperate for some fireworks from South Africa skipper Graeme Smith, who is yet to make any notable contribution.

The middle-order consisting Australian Rob Quiney and British Dimitri Mascarenhas will also have to strike form for the side to climb up in the points ladder.

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Highlights of match between Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League on Sunday.

• Kings XI have now recorded four points in four outings with a Net Run Rate of +0.271. Rajasthan Royals are placed at the seventh position with three points with a Net Run Rate of -1.700.
• The 75-run fifth-wicket partnership between Irfan Pathan and Kumar Sangakkara and Irfan Pathan is Kings XI’s best stand, obliterating the 63 between Yuvraj Singh and Irfan Pathan against Rajasthan at Jaipur last year.
• Shane Warne and Ravindra Jadeja put on a seventh-wicket stand of 60, which is the best in the IPL, bettering the 54 between Dilshan and Maharoof for Delhi Daredevils against Rajasthan Royals at Jaipur last year.
• Irfan Pathan (39 off 33 balls) recorded his second highest IPL innings, next only to the 40 off 18 balls against Chennai Super Kings at Chennai last year.
• In Rajasthan Royals’ innings, Irfan bowled splendidly to claim two wickets for 26 runs and became the first all-rounder to post a 35-plus and bag two wickets in the same match in the second edition.
• Irfan is now the second all-rounder after James Hopes from Kings XI to achieve the double.
• Ravindra Jadeja (37 off 44 balls) posted his best innings in the IPL, bettering an unbeaten 36 off 25 balls against Kings XI at Jaipur last year.
• Shane Warne’s unbeaten 34 off 33 balls is also his best IPL knock, outstripping the 22 not out off 9 balls against Deccan Chargers at Hyderabad last year.
• Kumar Sangakkara posted his fifth IPL fifty – his first fifty in the second edition.
• With 60 off 51 balls and two catches, Sangakkara has received his second Man of the Match award in the IPL.
• Kings XI Punjab, with a 27-run victory, have won two games out of three against Rajasthan Royals.
• Kings XI Punjab (139/6) recorded their lowest total against Rajasthan Royals.
• Rajasthan Royals also posted their lowest total against Kings XI Punjab.
• Kings XI Punjab recorded a 27-run win, which is their second in four matches this year in the IPL.

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A thrilling encounter is on the cards with the tactful Shane Warne’s Rajasthan Royals challenging win-hungry Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League match on Sunday.

The Rajasthan Royals pulled off a win via ‘Super Over’ in a nerve-wrecking tie against the Kolkata Knight Riders, putting behind their two successive losses to emphasise that they are in a serious business to defend their title in the eight-team tournament.

Warne fulfilled its promise to hit back strongly after it had collapsed to the lowest IPL total of 58 runs in their opening match while their second match had been washed off by rains. The Jaipur brigade would now try their best to build on their success and improve the run rate to fire up their title defence instead of slipping below the fourth position from here on.

With all-rounder Yusuf Pathan coming of age and rookie pacer Kamran Khan living up to Warne’s expectation, Rajasthan have also showed they were not missing any previous season players.

Kings XI Punjab, with just a single win in their pocket, requires to be extra cautious as they face Rajasthan Royals, who would be again waiting to surprise their opposition by flinging yet another surprise after baffling Kolkata Knight Riders in their previous match.

Punjab skipper Yuvraj Singh, on his part, would rely on another stint of apt execution of plan, especially by his bowlers to tame the Rajasthan Royals by causing their yet another batting fiasco.

Riding on the heroics of their new revelations young England batsman Ravi Bopara, who hammered a match winning knock of 85 runs, and bowler Yusuf Abdullah, the Preity Zinta-owned team would hope to climb the rungs on team standing table, where they are languishing at lowly sixth among eight contenders.

Besides, Yuvraj Singh and Co would also be praying that rain may not play a spoilsport as they bid to continue with their winning ways.

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Mumbai Indians will have to pull out all the stops when they face table-toppers Deccan Chargers, who will look to maintain their hot form in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at Kingsmead Saturday.

Mumbai Indians made a thumping start to the tournament, beating last year’s runner-up Chennai Super Kings before rain forced them to split points against Rajasthan Royals.

Deccan Chargers’ has been the story of the tournament so far. The last years bottom placed team is now leading the points table with two sweeping victories from two matches.

They have ruthlessly crushed Kolkata Knight Riders and Bangalore Royal Challengers. With the kind of arsenal at their disposal, Chargers have certainly worn the favourite tag a week into the tournament.

Captain Adam Gilchrist has led the team from the front with a smashing 45-ball 71 against Royal Challengers. Rohit Sharma has been a revelation with his clean strikes. The side also boasts of power-hitters like Herschelle Gibbs and Scott Styris.

Sharma, who has been out-of-form in the last couple of months, is happy to be back among runs.

“I was not in good touch, so I wanted to perform in the IPL. It is very important for me to play well here and I am happy to have made the right start,” he said.

Sharma also feels they have enough experience in the ranks to guide them in the tournament.

“I think we can be one of the top teams this year. Because we have seasoned campaigners who have played here before and they know how to adjust to the conditions.”

The bowling attack of the Chargers has also come good. The express-pace of Fidel Edwards and the swing of R.P Singh have not allowed other teams to explode in the powerplay. Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha has shone in the middle overs with crucial wickets. Ojha is not afraid of giving air to the ball and that has given him three important wickets, all stumped.

Mumbai Indians will be a bit rusty as they will be playing after a full week. Their last match against Rajasthan Royals was washed out. The Sachin Tendulkar-led side will be eager to take the field, having started the tournament with a big win against Super Kings. They are third in the table with three points from two matches.

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Yusuf Pathan smashed 18 runs off four balls as the Royals snatched victory over the Kolkata Knight Riders in a ’super over’ after their Indian Premier League match ended in a tie at Newlands on Thursday.

Kolkata needed only seven to win off the last over of the normal match, bowled by teenaged left-arm fast bowler Kamran Khan.

After starting the over with a wide, Khan, 18, dismissed former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly for 46 with his fifth ball.

With two needed to win off the last ball, Ishant Sharma hit a fierce drive which was parried by Royals captain Shane Warne at cover. The batsmen ran one but Sharma was run out attempting the winning run.

Khan was entrusted with the ’super over’ and was struck for three successive fours by Chris Gayle as the Knight Riders scored 15 for one, with Gayle caught off the last ball.

Sri Lankan mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis, who took two for 19 in four overs in the match, bowled the ’super over’ for Kolkata but Pathan hit him for 6, 2, 6, 4.

Chasing a modest total of 150 for six, Kolkata twice seemed headed for victory. Gayle was in imperious form as he hit 41 off 33 balls before falling to Warne.

The pendulum swung to the Royals with 44 needed off 25 balls.

But Ganguly slammed a no-ball from Munaf Patel for six, then made use of the free hit off the next ball to thrash another six.

With the target reduced to 31 off 24 balls, Ganguly seemed set to take Kolkata home before chasing a wide ball from Khan to be caught behind.

Pathan, who top-scored with 42 in his team’s full innings, was named man of the match.

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